The Clone Wars - Season 4 - Season Pass has been available on the US iTunes for a couple of weeks now. The iTunes season pass allows you to download each episode of The Clone Wars as it becomes available, usually a few hours after they air on the Cartoon Network. The episodes can then be watched on an Apple TV, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, PC, or Mac. A season pass often includes some bonuses such as trailers and interviews with the cast and writers.

Two extras currently available are:

Sneak Peek with Dave Filoni - this is available as a free download and is the extended Season 4 trailer with a special introduction by Dave.

laptops would fall under the category of inferior audio. seriously, people just need to watch/record clone wars when it comes on, or wait for the dvd. if you do one or both of those things, this "season pass" becomes irrelevant, "special" trailers and interviews notwithstanding.

i take it you don't plug speakers into your laptop then? headset is always an option as well. season passes are nice for those who want to keep up but don't have cable tv. don't knock digital delivery, it has a lot of strengths.

I assume that you get to keep all these episodes forever, as if you'd bought them on DVD? Hmm... I might have to look into what other shows might have this option. Because cable would cost me $40 a month, and there are very few shows I'd be interested in watching, but if I could get those few shows a la carte, and keep them indefinitely...

Nah, who am I kidding. With a little patience I'll be able to get seasons of most shows from the library for free (I've got Clone Wars season 3 on hold right now, along with a couple Mythbusters collections).

As I said in the article - The season pass can be watched on an Apple TV device as well. This is a small device that connects to your HDTV and allows you to stream HD content directly for the iTunes servers or form the downloaded version on your laptop.

This currently allows me to watch The Clone Wars (and other shows) in HD with 5.1 audio on my 40" TV, it also has the benefit of no ads or network logos, and I've also got a portable version for when I'm travelling.

oh, so you're saying all i have to do is purchase the apple tv box ($100) and then i can stream clone wars a few hours after it airs. uhhh wait, or i could just have my dvr record it and accomplish the same thing. oh darn, i forgot about those awesome "special" trailers and interviews again -- and the joy of watching clone wars on tiny screens and headphones.

ya know, i'm all for marketing new products, but this is just a bunch of hype. reminds me of at&t's u-verse feature which allows you to watch FOUR shows simultaneously -- like, FINALLY, JUST WHAT I'VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BEING ABLE TO DO!

deco_droid wrote:oh, so you're saying all i have to do is purchase the apple tv box ($100) and then i can stream clone wars a few hours after it airs. uhhh wait, or i could just have my dvr record it and accomplish the same thing. oh darn, i forgot about those awesome "special" trailers and interviews again -- and the joy of watching clone wars on tiny screens and headphones.

ya know, i'm all for marketing new products, but this is just a bunch of hype. reminds me of at&t's u-verse feature which allows you to watch FOUR shows simultaneously -- like, FINALLY, JUST WHAT I'VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BEING ABLE TO DO!

I'm not saying you need to purchase anything - you stated about watching on a 3" screen with inferior sound - I was just letting you know that's not the case for everyone.

In the UK to watch the Clone Wars you need to subscribe to Sky Movies - this is quite an expensive service, so it's not as simple a case as just setting your DVR for alot of people.

Having it on an iTunes account means you spread it across multiple devices with ease (something said DVR cannot do), and don't have to worry about it consuming space unless you want to save it (DVR can do that, I suppose). And you get faster access in case you don't have a DVR set up (since they're only in about 27% of American households), or don't have access to the channel (being a cable cutter or not having cable).

And while the 3.5" screen isn't optimal for watching everything, it can certainly occupy a kid for a half hour of blissful peace. Or my 9.7" iPad, or 15" laptop, all considerably easier to carry than my TV. Or my 24" screen, or 42" TV, if I feel like streaming it (or hooking up said iPad).

The simple fact is the season pass is no different than buying a DVD box set, except you get it quicker and don't have to deal with sitting it on a shelf. Different people strokes for different folks. Deco, it turns out, there are other types of consumers in the world. The vast majority of people fit into that category. Next time, I suggest using the back button instead of just showing up to troll in a thread.

I might be interested if this was available on Amazon (as I detest itunes), and it was priced no more than a dvd set goes for. As more and more people ditch cable, it's nice to have legitimate alternate methods of viewing shows in a reasonable timeframe (i.e. right as episodes are released, rather than wait for dvds).

Also, I highly recommend getting an HTPC or roku setup if you're cutting cable television, so no 3" screen watching on those downloads.

Not always, and that has far more to do with Lucas Arts and not Apple. Remember, content distributors control prices on iTunes. Amazon undercuts on some DVD sets because they can sacrifice margin, but it's not any cheaper to get them on iTunes than, say, Walmart or Best Buy, where the majority of TV box sets are still sold.

you're also paying it as a subscription, meaning you can download the episode after it airs. sure it's a bit of a premium over a dvd box or blu ray box set, but with a season pass you don't have to wait a few months after the season's over to start watching like you would with a dvd set. season 4 is just starting and the season 3 set is showing up for pre order now; sure you save money but you're essentially a season behind.

we can argue back and forth on the merits or shortcomings of either digital delivery or hard discs. they both have their strengths and there's a ton of ways to enjoy it. but i don't see the point in pigeonholing one method the way deco_droid has done into a very specific and way of watching when there are a myriad of options available.

Mister Ed wrote:I agree on the last part. I just think that in this case it is a HECK of a premium over the DVDs just to watch it earlier. I don't see being a season behind as a problem at all, but that's just me.